Luk Lamellen Und Kupplungsbau Gmbh

Lothar Huber

Paul Maucher

Oswald Friedmann

Edmund Maucher

Hermann Langeneckert

Kurt Frietsch

Werner Reitz

A friction clutch wherein an intermediate portion of a diaphragm spring is tiltable between two seats which are held in requisite positions by arms bent out from the bottom wall of the clutch housing. The arms extend axially within the seats and through openings provided therefor in the diaphragm spring, thereupon radially outwardly to overlie that side of the seat which confronts the pressure plate of the clutch to thus prevent axial movements of the seats and an intermediate portion of the spring relative to the bottom wall, and finally axially toward the bottom wall to prevent radial expansion of the seat confronting the pressure plate. The seats are or include split wire rings. The seat which is adjacent the bottom wall of the housing is held against radial expansion by an annular holding or clamping device forming part of and extending from the bottom wall of the housing toward the pressure plate. One of the arms, or an additional arm of the bottom wall, can serve to prevent rotation of the seats relative to the housing by extending into gaps between the end portions of the wire rings.

Friction clutch

A clutch plate wherein the input member carries friction linings and the output member includes a flange which is connected to a hub by a first damper. A second or main damper has a set of weaker and a set of stronger coil springs which are received in windows of the carrier and flange. The carrier is provided with projections which are receivable in circumferentially extending recesses of the flange to limit the extent of movability of the carrier and flange relative to each other from a neutral position to either of two end positions which can be reached by turning the carrier and the flange in opposite directions or by turning the carrier or the flange relative to the flange or carrier in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction. The recesses are provided in weakened sections of the flange between neighboring windows for stronger and weaker springs. In order to avoid excessive stressing of such sections in the two end positions of the flange and carrier relative to each other, one group of projections engages abutments in the respective recesses in the first end positions and another group of projections engages different abutments in the respective recesses in the second end positions of the flange and carrier. In addition, a weakened section which is engaged by a projection and by a stressed relatively weak spring is not engaged by a stressed stronger spring, and a weakened section which is engaged by a stressed stronger spring is not engaged by a projection and/or by a stressed relatively weak spring.

Clutch plate with plural dampers

A friction clutch wherein the clutch spring is held between two seats at one side of the clutch cover has an annular set of beams one end of each of which is integral with a discrete torsion bar of the cover and the other end of each of which carries one head of a rivet having a second head overlying that seat which is remote from the cover. The beams and/or the torsion bars are deformed during assembly of the clutch so that the rivets urge the remote seat toward the spring and the latter is urged against the other seat.

A friction clutch wherein a first unit including the cover, the diaphragm spring and the pressure plate is separably connected to a second unit including the clutch plate and its linings by a coupling device which centers the clutch plate relative to the pressure plate and maintains the clutch plate at an optimum distance from the cover for attachment of the cover to the flywheel on the crankshaft of the engine in a motor vehicle wherein the clutch plate is to transmit torque to the input shaft of a variable-speed transmission when the clutch is engaged. The coupling device is deactivated or destroyed in response to attachment of the cover to the flywheel.

Cover side of a friction clutch

A friction clutch having a cover, diaphragm spring and a device for tiltably supporting the spring at the cover. The supporting device has a first support at the cover side, a circular second support at the other side of the spring, and holding sections stamped out of the material of the cover and bent so as to project through cutouts of the spring. The sections orginally extend in the chordal or circumferential direction of the cover and are thereupon bent into planes extending at least substantially radially and at right angles to the plane of rotation of the cover. The entire sections or portions of the sections are bent in such a way that they extend axially beyond the second support and engage that side of the second support which faces away from the cover.

One or both end faces of the flange of the hub in a clutch disc have radially or nearly radially extending teeth which are caused to penetrate into adjacent shoulders of the sleeve-like other component of the hub so that the flange and the sleeve-like component are compelled to rotate as a unit. At least one of the shoulders is formed by upsetting the corresponding portion of the sleeve-like component.

Hub for clutch discs of friction clutches in motor vehicles

A friction clutch wherein the diaphragm spring is tiltably installed between two seats one of which abuts against or is integral with the cover. The other seat is permanently urged against the diaphragm spring, so that the latter is permanently urged against the one seat, by axially stressed lugs which form integral parts of the cover and extend axially through apertures in the diaphragm spring to bear against the other seat or carry rivets with heads bearing against the other seat.

A friction clutch having a cover, a diaphragm spring and a device for tiltably supporting the spring at the cover. The supporting device has a first support at the cover side, a circular second support at the other side of the spring, and holding sections stamped out of the material of the cover and bent so as to project through cutouts of the spring. The sections originally extend in the chordal or circumferential direction of the cover and are thereupon bent into planes extending at least substantially radially and at right angles to the plane of rotation of the cover. The entire sections or portions of the sections are bent in such a way that they extend axially beyond the second support and engage that side of the second support which faces away from the cover.

Friction clutch and method of assembling the same

A clutch disengaging apparatus wherein an annular cylinder defines an annular cylinder chamber receiving a reciprocable annular piston with an annular outer clearance surrounding the outer skirt of the piston and an annular inner clearance surrounding the inner skirt of the piston. A membrane overlies the bottom wall of the piston and its marginal portions are clamped between the sections of the cylinder so that the membrane forms an outer corrugation in the outer clearance and an inner corrugation in the inner clearance. A throw-out bearing is radially movably mounted in the piston and is biased against the prongs of the diaphragm spring in a clutch by a coil spring which is surrounded by an inner wall of the cylinder, which surrounds an outer wall of the cylinder, or which is installed in the cylinder chamber between the bottom walls of the piston and the cylinder. The piston is guided against radial movement with reference to the cylinder by a tubular guide member which is connected to or forms an integral part of the inner wall of the cylinder and is tracked by one or more followers of the piston.

Fluid-operated clutch disengaging apparatus

A friction clutch wherein the pressure plate at one side of the clutch disc is axially movably connected with a cover by a set of leaf springs. The cover is driven by the crankshaft of the engine. The pressure plate is biased against the adjacent lining of the clutch disc by a diaphragm spring whose radially outermost portion reacts against the cover and which bears against the pressure plate in a region which is located somewhat inwardly of the radially outermost portion. The clutch disc is disposed between the axially movable pressure plate and a counterpressure plate which is non-rotatably affixed to the support by a distancing component made of sheet metal and holding the counterpressure plate at a fixed distance from the support. The distancing component has a clamping portion overlying that side of the counterpressure plate which faces away from the support.

A positive engagement clutch between the serially connected coaxial first and second crankshafts in an internal combustion engine is activated upon acceleration of the second crankshaft to the speed of the first crankshaft and after the second crankshaft assumes a predetermined angular position relative to the first crankshaft. The acceleration is performed by a friction clutch which is interposed between first and second camshafts which are respectively driven by and drive the first and second crankshafts. The first crankshaft and the associated camshaft form part of a normally operative first section of the engine wherein the first crankshaft is rotatable by one or more cylinders whenever the engine is running. The second crankshaft and the associated second camshaft form part of a second section of the engine wherein the crankshaft is rotatable by one or more additional cylinders upon direct coupling of the two crankshafts to each other. Each section of the engine may be installed in a discrete cylinder block or both sections may have a common casing.

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Buhl-Altschweier, Germany

Lothar Huber